Romeo and Romeo
by amiundone
Summary: My star brothers, my hood friends, my secret lover, and his freaky enemy.
1. Chapter 1

Romeo and Romeo: Ponyboy&Johnny

Romeo and Romeo

Summary

My star brothers, my hood friends, my secret lover, and his freaky enemy.

Couple

Ponyboy Curtis and Johnny Cade

Chapter One

Ponyboy's P.O.V 

This all started the first day of tenth grade. It was second period, science, and I had the class with Two-Bit, Marcia, and Cherry, not that Cherry noticed me.

Marcia was sitting with Two-Bit, joking around. She didn't seem to care about being around us.

I sat with Randy and Bryon in homeroom. I don't know why Cherry was still putting on the act.

"Oh, gees… Ponyboy Curtis?" The teacher, Coach Miller, asked as he called role

"Here." I spoke up, accepting the giggles from the other classmates.

"Any relation to Darrel Curtis?" He asked.

"Yeah, his dad." Two-Bit yelled out, earning laughs from the whole class.

"Shut it." I hissed back to him. "He's my brother, Sir."

"He was a great football player. Would you ever consider trying out?" He asked.

"No I don't think so." I answered; I didn't even correct this teacher, telling him I was already the star track runner.

He then went on to role and forgot all about me.

Thirty minutes into the class the door opened and Johnny walked in.

We locked eyes and he smiled at me.

I was surprised he came to school.

He came sometimes but not much.

"It's nice of you to join us…" Couch Miller said, looking through his role book.

"Johnny Cade." Johnny told him.

"Oh… Mr. Cade… Please take a seat." He said, nervously.

Johnny plopped down beside me with a note book and a pen.

I leaned over closer to him to talk. "What are you doing here?" I whispered.

"Why? You don't want me here?" He asked, still smiling at me.

"No, but I thought you were just gonna stay at my house till I got home."

"Maybe I couldn't wait that long."

Johnny and I had been together for a few weeks and no one knew. It just wasn't something to go around telling people.

Anyway, when class ended Johnny and me were stopped by Cherry in the hall.

"Hey." I greeted, but she looked right passed me.

"You pig!" She yelled, slapping him in the face.

I'd never seen a girl jump anyone till then, but when I tried to pull her off one of her guy's pushed me across the hall.

"What's goin on here?" I heard behind me. I never thought I'd be so happy to see Steve in my life.

He was accompanied with two other greasers from his grade.

"She's beating Johnny up." I yelled over to him.

"Then why didn't you do nothin? You're just useless!" Steve yelled, thrusting his books at me before running into the crowed.

It wasn't long before he was being carried out by some guy.

The other two greasers, Hank and Jimmy, were fighting with some of the other people.

It was starting to get outa hand and I knew Johnny wasn't fighting back with Cherry.

"What is going on out here?!" Mr. White, the principal, yelled.

Most of the Socs let the Greasers loose and acted hurt.

Only Cherry was still punching at Johnny.

When Steve and I made out way over to them we were surprised to see he wasn't letting her get a punch in. He had blocked them all.

Steve grabbed Cherry by the waist and pulled her up.

Her feet didn't touch the ground as Steve held her up. She was leaning so far forward if he let go she's face plant. "I hate you! They should have given you death!" She yelled as she struggled to get away from Steve.

"Come on, don't be like that." I told her, getting closer to her and Steve, stepping in her line of vision.

She stared at me for a minute then punched me in the nose. "Get out of my face, Hood!"

I knew my nose was broken, but it didn't matter at the time. I was watching her.

Steve refused to put her down, so the principal told him to carry her to the office.

Everyone started going to class, as for me I was being escorted to the nurse's office by Jimmy.

I turned around just in tile to see Cherry spit at Johnny as he walked to the side doors.

Something told me that was Johnny's last day in school.


	2. Chapter 2

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Two 

I sat with my head tipped up and an ice pack over my nose for a few minutes before the nurse told me to call my parents.

"I can't." I told her. Really I felt bad for her; she was new and had just started a week earlier so I didn't expect her to know about my current situation.

"And why is that?" She asked.

"They're dead." I answered.

The tone of her voice changed real quick.

"Oh… Well is there anyone you can call?"

"Yeah, you could go find Steve Randle and tell him to call my older brother at work." I told her.

She nodded and walked out of the room quickly.

I sighed and leaned against the wall.

This was gonna hurt for a few days and I knew Darry was gonna fix it himself when he got home.

Darry fixed Tim's nose every time he broke it, three times to be exact.

I watched him do it before and I always knew I never wanted that to happen to me.

Darry would put his hands on both sides of Tim's nose and just push it back so that it was strait.

Of course, Tim didn't even wince when it happened, but when I heard the crack of his bone moving I knew that must have hurt worse then having it broken.

Finally, Steve and the nurse found their way back.

Steve picked up the phone and quickly dialed the number.

"DX Station. Sodapop speaking." I barley heard from the other end.

"Hey Soda, you gotta take your lunch right now." Steve said, smiling at me from across the room.

"Why? Its ten a.m. There's no way…"

"Your little brother got beat up by a girl." Steve told him.

"Did not!" I said loudly so that Sodapop would hear me.

"I'll be there in a minute." Sodapop said quickly.

Before he hung up I heard the jingling of car keys so I knew he was bringing the car he was working on or something.

"I'm gonna hang around here with Pony till his brother turns up." Steve told the nurse.

She nodded and went back to her paper work. Maybe she was righting out an application for a real job.

"How ya doin?" He asked sitting beside me.

"Well… My friend got jumped by a Soc, a girl Soc that wishes him dead, in the hall way. Then some guy flung me into a brick wall. You shoved your books into my stomach. Now my brother is coming to pick me up in someone else's car, committing grand theft auto, because a girl broke my nose. It's been a pretty bad start in the tenth grade." I explained.

"Oh well, you'll get over it." Steve said, patting me on the shoulder.

A few minutes later Sodapop walked in and stunned the young nurse.

"W-What do you need?" She asked, standing up to see him fully.

"I'm here to pick up Ponyboy." He answered, looking over to me smiling.

I only saw him from the corner of my eye.

"I'll need you to come over here and sign some papers, Darrel right?" She said, motioning to the seat in front of her.

"No I'm Sodapop Curtis, Ponyboy's other brother. There's no way to get in touch with Darrel while he's at work. They should have me on the papers." Sodapop told her.

"Oh yes here it is. But, the school would rather Darrel. Are you sure there's no way to find Darrel?" She asked, reading through the papers.

"Well that's really too bad… Man it's really hot in here." Sodapop said as he stripped from his DX over shirt, leaving him in only a tin tank top.

I thought the lady was gonna pass out.

"But, really I can't do anything about it, Darry's probably across town." Sodapop told her, pushing his shoulders back to show off his chest.

I heard Steve chuckle beside me.

"Well… I guess… Just this once…" She stuttered, not exactly looking at his face anymore.

"Thanks a lot." Sodapop said, signing me out. He looked back at her and smile. "You must be new. I haven't ever seen you."

She nodded and blushed a darker color. "I just started. I'm in school to be an RN."

"Wow that sounds great. I'm just a gas station worker for now." Soda told her.

I head started to hurt and I was about to get up and kick his butt.

"Well you're still young." She said, putting the papers away.

"You have no idea."

Steve snorted trying to hold back a laugh at the dumb nurse.

Sodapop bent down and wrote our address on some paper.

"Uhm… Sodapop… I'd love to go home." I told him, getting really impatient.

"Well come on." He said, helping me up.

"You may go to class now, Randle." The nurse told Steve.

"Sure." Steve answered, following us out.

He followed us to the parking lot and into the blue mustang Sodapop drove to the school.

"Not going back to class?" I asked, getting in the back so that I could lay down.

"Naw…" Steve answered, slipping in the car. "Man, this is awesome."

"Yeah. I need to get it back. Steve, could you stay with Ponyboy till Darry gets home?" Sodapop asked as he started the car.

"Sure thing." Steve answered.

"You're not even gonna notice me. You're gonna toss Aspirin at me and mess up the house." I complained.

"Can it." Steve said, slugging me in the leg.

"Forget it. Johnny or Dally might be around. If not I'll go get Tim or Curly." Sodapop said.

It wasn't a long ride to the house, but just long enough for me to fall asleep. I felt myself being lifted up by some strong arms.

They weren't like Darry's cause I really didn't feel safe.

They were strong, but shaky.

I looked up to Dally with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth.

"Gees, the kid's heavy." He complained.

"Don't drop me…" I told him.

"I should." He said, grinning.

When he got inside he almost dropped me on the couch and went to sit down in Darry's oversized chair.

"I'll see you tonight Ponyboy." Sodapop said before he left.

"Hey Dal, how long have you been here." Steve asked, sitting on the arm of the couch, putting his but right in my face.

It was so gross… Ewww…Steve butt…

"Not too long. Johnny's asleep in Ponyboy's room. He looks like he had a hard morning."

"You have no idea. This morning that red headed chick, she jumped him in the hallway." Steve and Dally started laughing and I was getting really angry.

She wished him dead, that's not funny and even Steve knew that.

I didn't want to tough his butt with my hand as he moved around laughing, so I grabbed my leg and pulled it over my head. It was an exercise we did before a track met. With my leg over my head I kicked him in the back so hard he fell on the floor.

Dally almost fell on the floor himself, he was laughing so hard.

After that I took like sixty Aspirins and went to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Three 

I woke up around eight at night and saw everyone looking down at me.

They all stared down at me like I had an alien on my forehead.

"See I told you it'd wake him up." Dally said, grinning at Darry.

I sat up quickly and bumped heads with Johnny.

Everyone else started to laugh at us, but I thought I was almost knocked out.

"You okay, Pony?" Johnny asked, helping me sit up.

"Sure." I answered, leaning on him.

"Aww, you two are so cute." Two-Bit mocked, sitting close to Johnny.

"Come here Ponyboy." Darry said, gesturing to his chair.

I sucked up all my courage and sat down in front of him.

He bent down and looked me straight in the face.

I felt his large, cold hands on my nose and I closed my eyes.

"This won't take long." He whispered.

Before I knew it he had pushed my nose into place. It hurt, I thought I was gonna start screaming.

I leaned back in his chair and almost ripped the arms off.

"Take some Aspirin. And don't OD, two should be enough." Darry told me, tossing to white bottle to me.

I dry swallowed two and looked at the TV.

"Charge!" A fat man yelled as he ran up a flight of stairs.

"What is this?" Dally asked.

"It's 1944's Arsenic and Old Lace with Cary Grant." I answered as I remembered the middle school play I was in. I was cast as Mortimer Brewster, the main character.

"Oh yeah I remember going to your school play, Mortimer." Two-Bit said, making everyone laugh.

"Yeah, how did the end go again?" Steve asked.

I smiled; entertaining them wouldn't be that bad. "No, no. I'm not a Brewster. I'm the son of a sea-cook! Ha! Ha! Chaaaaarrrge!" I yelled, making them all almost topple over laughing.

"Wasn't Johnny in that play, too?" Two-Bit asked.

We all looked at him and he shrugged.

"I was Teddy Brewster." He told us, smiling a little.

"Dinner's ready!" Darry called from the kitchen.

Johnny and I sat back as everyone else ran to the kitchen to make a plate.

We locked eyes and smiled.

I reached down my shirt and fished out my necklace that hung loosely around my neck. I had a golden one and Johnny had silver.

Johnny had lifted them when we first got together and we kept the necklaces a secret too.

The gang would ask too many questions if they knew.

"Ponyboy. Johnny. You two okay?" Sodapop asked as he set his plate down on the table.

I quickly stuffed the necklace back down my shirt. "We're fine." I answered, standing to get some food.

Johnny followed behind me.

We got to the kitchen and I sat down on the empty counter, waiting for the others to finish.

Johnny stood beside me and leaned on my knee.

Once everyone was out of the room we glanced at each other.

Johnny moved to grab a plate and I jumped down from the counter.

I grabbed Johnny's arm and he turned around to face me.

We stared at each other then I looked past Johnny to the table, where everyone was.

They were all talking to each other. They wouldn't notice us.

Johnny pressed his forehead against mine.

I closed my eyes and sighed. "How long can we keep this up?" I whispered.

"As long as we have to." He answered, putting the plate on the counter beside him.

I felt his hands run up my arms to my neck. "I don't want to do this anymore." I told him.

"Me either." He said before brushing his lips against my cheek, taunting me.

"Not here." I whispered.

"I understand." He said, giving me a short, sweet kiss before getting his food.

"What's taking you guys in there?" Dally called.

"Not of your business." I said back.

Johnny and I sat in the living room and ate with Steve and Sodapop.

"We're outa here after dinner. You mind doing my dishes, Pony? I'll make it up to you." Sodapop practically begged.

"Sure." I answered. "Where're you guys goin?"

"Party." Steve answered.

I nodded and looked back at my plate.

Sodapop hadn't left the house for a party or a date since Johnny and I came home.

Dally brought us back when Johnny told him to.

Darry and Sodapop flipped out when they saw us in the red convertible.

After dinner Sodapop and Steve left and I went to do the dishes myself.

I think I heard Dally leave too.

Darry, Two-Bit, and Johnny sat in the living room watching TV.

When I finished the dishes I grabbed a towel and went to take a shower.

Almost a second after I stepped under the water I heard a gun shot sound outside our house.

I quickly got out and put on my pants.

When I got outside Darry and Two-Bit were already standing at the door.

Johnny was looking out the window.

Darry slammed the door shut and went back to his chair.

"What happened?" I asked as Johnny and Two-Bit sat down on the couch.

"Some guy pulled a gun in a little fight outside. What's that around your neck?" Darry asked looking at my gold necklace around my neck.

"Something I found in school." I lied.

"How do you feel?" He asked.

I shrugged and forgot about taking a shower. It really didn't matter.

We were in silents for a few minutes when there was a knock at the door.

I went to get it, hoping it wasn't someone that was gonna shot me in the head.

It was the next best thing to a greaser.

Randy and Marcia stood in front of me with a paper bag.

"We need to talk." Randy said.

I stepped aside and let him in.

Marcia stood in 'aw' staring at my chest.

I was just then getting my build back form five days of bologna, soda, candy bars, and cigarette.

"Come in. It's cold out here." I offered, getting really uncomfortable.

She nodded and quickly walked in.

Johnny stared at them as they both stood in front of him.

"Hey, Kid." Randy said, holding his hand out to him.

"What do you want?" Two-Bit asked, slapping his hand away from Johnny.

Marcia and Two-Bit locked eyes for a second, but both quickly looked away.

"I think we all need to talk about Cherry, Bob's old girlfriend." He told everyone.

"She's nuts." Marcia said.

Randy set the bag down in the coffee table and pushed it towards Johnny.

Johnny took the bag, but kept looking Randy in the eyes. He finally looked down in the bag. He stuck his hand in and pulled out a dead kitten with velvet like black fur.

"Is this some kinda joke?" Darry asked.

Johnny looked down at the cat and saw it was stabbed in the side, like where he stabbed Bob.

"There's a note." Randy told him.

Johnny grabbed the blood covered note and read it quickly. "I'm gonna be sick." He told us before dropping everything and running to the bathroom.

I reached over and grabbed the note.

_YOU'RE NEXT _


	4. Chapter 4

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Four 

Darry put the bag outside and told Randy and Marcia to hit the road. He was noticeable not happy with what happened.

Johnny took a long shower as we all sat out in the living room. He told us he wasn't feeling really good.

My stomach was turning as I sat, still shirtless and cold, with Two-Bit and Darry.

"She was the one that jumped him today." I told them. "It was weird. I knew Johnny wouldn't fight back, but she never got a punch in."

Darry nodded and looked at Two-Bit, who was just looking at the floor. "I think we should keep Johnny here till this blows over."

Two-Bit nodded and looked out the window. "And lock the door?"

"No. That's not and option." Darry argued. "I'll sleep out on the couch and put Johnny in my room."

"I don't think Johnny would want to be alone." I cut in. I didn't know what I was thinking. "Sodapop could stay in your room and Johnny could stay with me."

Darry nodded and sat back, closing his eyes. "What a creep…" He whispered.

"She wasn't always like this." I defended her. I don't know why, I just did.

Sodapop came home around one.

Darry told him what happed and he showed sympathy for Johnny, who was passed out on the couch beside me.

"How's he holding up?" Soda asked, rubbing Johnny's arm.

"He's calm about it." Two-Bit answered.

"The two that came over… are they okay?" Soda asked, searching Darry's face for an answer.

"I wouldn't trust Randy." I spoke up. "He was one of the Socs that jumped us."

"Darry I think you should put Johnny to bed. He don't look very comfortable." Two-Bit suggested.

Darry got up and picked Johnny up easily.

I followed them to my room and sat down on my side of the bed.

Darry carefully put him on the bed and told me to stay with him.

"Night." I called after him as he walked out.

"Night." He said back, closing the door.

I looked down at Johnny and decided the wake him. I shook him a little and his eyes opened quickly.

"Pony?" He asked as he sat up, letting his eyes get adjusted to the dark.

"We're alone now." I told him as I moved closer.

Johnny grinned and put his am around my waist. "What was on your mind?" He asked, lightly kissing my neck.

"Nothing much." I whispered as his tongue ran a line to my jaw. "How are you feeling?" I asked as he ran his hand down my chest.

"Better now." He answered, fingering my necklace.

"Good." I slipped my hands up his shirt and pushed him down to the mattress.

He went down easily, but rolled us over so that he was in power. He was the 'man' in the relationship and I didn't care. Johnny pulled his shirt off and tossed it at the wall.

It felt good to have him with me like that. Even if everyone would think it's wrong. We knew it wasn't.

"Do you feel up to this? What if we get caught?" I asked.

We never did this when anyone was home and then they were right out side.

"Just be quiet and they'll never know." Johnny whispered.

I bit my lip and closed my eyes. "Okay, but this time… don't let it burn."

THE NEXT MORNING

I woke up cradled in Johnny's arms.

Light greeted me from the window and I decided it was time to get up.

Johnny groaned as I got up. "What time is it?" He asked, rolling over to get away from the light.

"6:30. I got to get ready for school." I told him, pulling on some hand-me-down jeans and a loose off-white tee-shirt. I tucked my necklace away in my shirt and sat beside Johnny on the bed.

He was still laying there facing the wall.

I pulled the covers off of him, showing that he was only in his underwear.

"Pony!" He growled, glaring at me.

"Put on some pants before anyone comes in." I told him, tossing his pants over to him.

Johnny quickly pulled them on and sat up.

I grabbed his shirt and gave it to him. "You gonna be okay here today?" I asked.

"Sure. I mean Cherry'll be at school… I guess…" He answered, pulling his brown shirt on over his head.

"Maybe someone'll stay with you. Like Two-Bit or Steve." I said getting up and grabbing my bag that was in the corner of the room.

Johnny just sat there, looking at the floor.

I dropped my bag beside the bed and sat beside him. "You're gonna be okay." I told him.

Johnny shook his head. "She wants me dead. She could have me killed if she wanted to get one of her friends to do it. I'm good as dead."

I placed my finger over his lip. "Don't talk like that." I told him.

Johnny nodded and pushed my hand away.

"I'd better get going. I need to get to the classes I missed and figure out what I missed." I told him as I stood up.

Johnny got up with me and kissed me softly. "I'll see you when you get home."

I nodded and left him there.

When I got to the living room I saw that Darry was still asleep on the couch and Two-Bit was on the floor.

I stepped over Two-Bit and shook Darry awake. "I'm going to school early." I told him.

Darry nodded and went back to sleep.

I rolled my eyes and went to the front door.

It was gonna be a long day.

When I got on the front porch I saw a rose laying on one of the steps.

It was a dead rose with a note pinned to it.

I picked it up and looked at it.

It was blank.

I was then confused by it and accidentally pricked my finger on a thorn.

"Ow!" I said as I dropped it.

That couldn't have been a normal thorn, it went too deep.

Then I saw Cherry standing beside the light post in front of the house with a crazy smile.

"You're crazy!" I yelled to her.

She didn't move at all.

I walked over to her and grabbed her arm. "Stop it." I warned her.

She just smiled up to me. "What are you talking about Ponyboy? I thought we were friends."

"You've lost it." I whispered as she stepped closer to me, pushing her hair be hind her.

"You remind me of Bob with you're hair like that." She said, grabbing a fist full of my hair. "I miss you so much, Bob…" She whispered, kissing me hard.

I struggled to get away, but she ripped at my hair every time I moved. I felt her teeth sink into my lip and I tried to pull away, but made it worse.

She let me go then walked away calmly as I had my hand over my bleeding lip.


	5. Chapter 5

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Five

I walked toward the school a few minutes later, knowing it would be stupid to go back inside after all that.

Blood ran down my chin and I was thinking what I should do at that point.

Going to school would be where Cherry is and the teachers would ask questions.

Going home would be where everyone else is and they would ask questions too.

At the time I wasn't ready for an interview by anyone.

I stopped dead in my tracks and decided to skip school and go to the lot or something to hang out for a while. I walked back over to the lot and tossed my bag down.

Wasn't she after Johnny?

It just seemed like I was the one getting physically hurt here.

I dug around in my bag and pulled out a book I was reading and spread out on the ground.

It was hard to concentrate on the book after being brutally bit during a crazy make out session.

Who did she think I was? Bob? Possibly… What a freak…

I closed my book and shoved it back into my bag and sighed.

THREE HOURS LATER

I was playing with a blade of grass when I heard someone call my name.

"Ponyboy!" It was a girl and for a minute I thought it was Cherry.

I got up and saw Randy and Marcia walking over to me. "What are you two doing?"

"We heard about what happened." Randy said, putting his hand on my chin and tipping my head back.

"Cherry told us." Marcia said, sitting down beside me.

"She's a freak." Randy commented.

"You guys are really on the wrong side of town." I told them.

"It doesn't matter." Randy said, sitting beside Marcia.

"Anywhere is better than with Cherry." Marcia said, looking around.

"Come on. I'll take you guys to my house. It's safe there." I said, grabbing my bag and heading there.

When we got there I saw that Darry and Sodapop had already gone to work.

Two-Bit and Johnny looked at us and relaxed.

"What happened to your lip?" Johnny asked.

I explained what happened and Two-Bit looked like he was about to die if he didn't laugh.

"Go ahead." I said looking at him.

As Two-Bit laughed I met eyes with Johnny, whom looked worried.

I motioned for him to follow me into the bathroom. I went to the sink and washed my face, getting all the dry blood off. I locked eyes with him through the mirror.

"Are you okay?" Johnny asked, getting closer.

I shrugged. "I guess." I saw him close the door beside me and get as close as he could, pressing his chest against my back.

"Are you going to be okay walking to school on your own?" He whispered placing his hands on the sink.

"I don't know." I answered soft biting my bottom lip.

Johnny just stared at my reflection after that.

I felt his arms go around my stomach and he held me tight.

"I love you." He whispered softly.

"I love you too…" I whispered back.

I looked at our reflection in the mirror and noticed how we looked.

Our body's fit perfectly together, yet the image showed me how other people would have seen us.

I placed my hand on Johnny's cheek and kissed him in the odd position.

He let his tongue find a way in to my mouth.

I moaned a little in his mouth and pulled away. "I never want to leave." I told him.

"Me either." Johnny replied.

"Are you guys okay?" Two-Bit asked from the other end of the door.

"But we have to." He whispered.

"Yeah." I answered Two-Bit.

Johnny let me go and leaned against the wall, biting his lip.

"We don't have to…" I whispered, walking over to him.

"He'll suspect something." Johnny protested.

"Let him." With that I kissed him to close it all.

Johnny gave up and held me tight against him.

My heart started to beat faster and faster as he hand rubbed my whole body, giving me chills. I felt his hands come to a stop in my back pockets. I lifted my hands to the back of his head and pushed them through his hair.

"We're gonna get caught." Johnny whispered, breathless, in my ear.

I nodded and held onto him. "It's not fair."

"I know." He said, kissing me on the top of my head.


	6. Chapter 6

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Six 

It had been a week or so since I saw Cherry. I hoped that she'd given up on it all. She hadn't come to school at all.

Everything at the house had gone back to normal. Sodapop was back in my room and Johnny was back to coming and going as he pleased. Johnny became more attached to staying at the house than ever before.

School became something I looked forward to as I became top of my class in almost every class. The only person to ever top me in the history of the poor, divided school was Darry. I became very competitive with track as Darry had with football and Sodapop had with rodeos. I started making recorded times for a heavy smoker. I had also decided to take a creative writing class as an extra to maintain my grade point average, that class _gave_ me an A.

Johnny decided to come back to school after a while and got decent grades. Not grades that Darry would accept, but passing grades. Him and Two-Bit hung around a lot in class while I did my work. At lunch we would all go out to smoke and stuff. Sometimes Two-Bit and Johnny would skip the rest of the day and hang around with Sodapop at the DX.

Steve, being a grade above the three of us, only saw us at lunch sometimes. He was really to himself at school, making grades almost like mine and trying to stay away from Socs. Steve wasn't as much like Two-Bit as some people thought. He never skipped like Two-Bit and he made great grades. Steve wasn't into sports and thank God for that. He was way too competitive and might have killed someone if he lost at anything like that.

Well anyway, what I'm trying to say is school became my life, and what a good life it turned out to be.

One day I was in my creative writing class when the football coach, Coach Kell, called me to his office.

I walked up the narrow hall to his small office beside the front office. I knocked on the door and waited for him to call me in.

"Come in." He called.

I opened the door and saw him sitting at his desk with a few papers.

"Come sit down here, Curtis." He demanded, pointing to a torn up chair that lived through like three decades at the lest.

I sat down and looked at the papers.

They were mine and Darry's physical reports.

"Ponyboy, I think you could be just as successful as Darry turned out to be if you joined the football team." He told me.

"Really?" I asked, trying to sound interested. I really wasn't. I didn't want to be on the football team. I liked to run and not get tackled from behind.

"Now Ponyboy I know you're not really thinking this all through, but really you make a difference on this team. I looked at you're and Darry's physical reports and you're almost the same as he was." He explained, passing me the papers.

I looked them though and saw that he was telling the truth, but the papers were made out before what happened and I lost most of my strength.

Darry had only been a few more pounds than me when he was my age.

"Look Coach, I can run, but I can be chased. Do you get me? I just can't be on the football team." I told him.

"You other brother turned me down too. A shame, we really need another Curtis out there." The coach said, taking the papers away.

I nodded and made my way back to class, passing the occasional bad boy skipping class and the popular girls that got out of class. I felt a little self conscious wearing torn blue jeans, old Chuck Taylor All Stares that belonged to my dad, and a hoody. Not really the style at the time.

AFTER SCHOOL

I met up with Steve outside in the parking lot.

"Where's Two-Bit and Johnny?" He asked as we got in his old car.

"I don't know. They bolted outa here at lunch." I answered, propping my feet up on the dash.

"Get your feet off my dash." He demanded as we pulled out of the parking lot. "I got to go strait to the DX so that I can work a double, you gonna be good walking home?" Steve asked as we went down the road.

"Yeah." I answered, pulling out a cigarette. "You got a match?" I asked, remembering I'd left my lighter at home.

"Yeah." Steve answered, digging in his pockets. He tossed me the box.

I light the stick and opened the window. I loved the smell of matches, but I hated striking them.

"So, I heard about you and Johnny, haled up in the bathroom together last week." Steve brought up.

"What about it?" I asked, trying to play cool.

"Nothin. It just sounded strange." He said with a wide grin.

"Man, it was nothin like that. Shut up and drive." I demanded, taking a long, long drag.

"You're gonna drop dead if you keep smoking that way." Steve commented a few minutes later.

I shrugged, "That's my problem."

AT THE DX

When we got to the DX we found Johnny and Two-Bit hangin around inside.

"Hey Pony, what'd we miss at school?" Two-Bit asked when we walked in.

"Nothing you'd care about. The football coach tried to recruit me again." I told them.

Steve went to clock in as we talked.

"Did you take it this time?" Johnny asked.

"No. I don't wanna be tackled by sweaty guys." I told them, blushing a little at my own comment.

"You kids gotta get outa here! You're scaring away my customers!" The manager yelled from the counter.

"Oh come on, Bill. You need us here." Two-Bit said as Johnny and I went to the door.

"OUT!" He yelled at Two-Bit.

We walked over to the garages where Sodapop and Steve were.

They were both leaned over an old pick up truck.

"Hey, what ya lookin at?" Two-Bit asked, looking over them.

"Nothing you'd understand." Steve snapped.

"Gees, sorry." Two-Bit said, backing away and looking in the tool box.

"You guys gonna stand around or help out?" Sodapop asked, wiping his hands with a rag. "I'm due for a break anyway."

Johnny wasn't into cars, but he understood them enough to work with Sodapop and Steve. He took aeromechanics and passed it with flying colors, but he seemed bored with cars.

I didn't know half of what he did; I just did what Sodapop told me.

_Clank! Bash! _

"Darn it, Two-Bit! Get out of here!" Steve yelled, throwing his tool at him.

Two-Bit had knocked something off the wall into the tool box, making a loud noise. And if we all knew anything about Steve was that he hated unnecessary loud noises.

Two-Bit ran out of the garage.

Sodapop shook his head as he sat on the ground, leaning on the truck. He suddenly looked at a posted by the door with interest. "Pony, go tell me what that is." He said, pointing to it.

I went over and read it to him.

It was something about a rodeo and the winner of the horse race and the winner of the bull riding would win 50.

"Interested in it, Soda?" Steve asked, closing the hood.

"I don't know. I mean I could do the horse race and Dally is a mean bull rider. And everyone knows how to ride. Everyone would have a good time I guess." Sodapop said. "What day is it on?"

"The whole rodeo is this weekend and the competitions are on Sunday." I told him.

"I think I'll go." Sodapop said, picking himself up. "Did you get it?" He asked.

I tuned out most of the car talk and looked around.

It was a pretty nice place. It had a Coke machine. That was tuff. There were some other guys working on the other side, they just ignored us the whole time.

"How was school, Pony?" Sodapop asked as Steve drove the truck to the back, where someone could come pick it up.

"It was okay." I answered, sitting down in one of the old chairs.

Johnny stood looking off at the other wall like he saw something we couldn't.

"That's good. When's your next meet?" He asked, coming to stand with me.

"I don't know. Friday I think." I answered.

He nodded, but I knew he really didn't care. Sodapop hated all sports. He could do them, like when he took P.E, but he still hated them. He also hated to dress in the shorts for P.E. He thought he looked stupid in them, but the girls, and some of the guys, in his class thought differently.

Steve was way different. We had P.E together and he loved it. He could claim the rope in record time then come back down upside-down. It was entertaining. He could play any sport and lived to show off his flips and stuff, but so did I and Two-Bit.

Johnny didn't even dress for P.E. He would stand outside on the football field smoking most of the time.

Like I said, school was becoming my life. It was a good life, but I still stood under the shadow of my star brothers.


	7. Chapter 7

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Seven 

Cherry was at school on that Friday and she looked somewhat normal. Her hair and make-up was done perfectly. She was sitting and laughing with friends. She even held some jocks hand in class. I really didn't want her to notice me and for everything to go back to normal with us.

P.E was my third class of the day and I had it with Two-Bit, Steve, and Johnny. It was athletic P.E mixed with normal P.E. I was the only athletic in the group, so before I could work with the others I had to run two miles.

Anyway, I walked with the group to the dressing room.

"Man I'm ready to sweat!" Steve said with a grin.

"Man, that's gross." Johnny commented, lighting a cigarette careless about the rules.

"Johnny you just don't know the feeling." Steve said as we got there.

"Sure." Johnny said, leaning against the wall outside the locker room.

The three of us went in and grabbed out uniforms.

The uniforms were stupid. There were light blue shorts and white t-shirts. That was it. I felt weird wearing it.

"Come on, Pony." Steve said as I pulled my shirt on.

"Coming." I squeaked, pulling it over my head.

We met Johnny outside as we walked to the gym.

"Where will you guys be when I finish?" I asked when we got there.

"Lifting weights." Two-Bit answered.

I nodded and went back to the track. I had to complete two miles in ten minutes. I started the stop watch and got going. When I finished my heart was pounding and my feet felt like they were still going. I quickly stopped the watch and grinned. 9 minutes and 45 seconds.

I walked slowly to the weights, where Two-Bit was lifting at the time.

"That was fast." Steve commented.

"I know. It's a new time for me." I said, gabbing a towel.

"Well isn't that great, Flash." Two-Bit said, putting the weights up.

"You ready, Pony?" Steve asked, patting the chair.

"No. I just ran two miles in under ten minutes. Kiss my butt." I said as I walked to the water fountain with Johnny.

"Hey Ponyboy." I heard behind me. I turned around and saw Marcia with Cherry.

"Uh… Hi Marcia… Cherry." I said.

"What do you want?" Johnny asked from behind me.

Cherry smiled at him. "Hey Johnny. What are you boys up to?" She asked.

Johnny turned on his heels and walked back to the weights.

"I… Uhm… We were just working out." I answered trying to act calm.

"Oh well that's nice. Mind if we go watch?" Marcia asked, giving me a nice smile.

I shrugged and knew Johnny wasn't gonna like this.

We all walked back to the weights where I saw something I thought I'd never see.

Johnny was benching like four times his weight. And he was going at it. His over shirt was over beside Steve, leaving him in his tank top.

Two-Bit looked at Cherry and lifted and eyebrow. I just shrugged at him and watched Johnny.

"Why'd you bring her here?" Steve whispered.

"I don't know. What was I gonna say?" I whispered back.

"How bout 'piss off you crazy bitch'?" Two-Bit asked.

I punched him in the arm and looked over at the girls.

They were whispering and giggling, like normal girls.

"They're acting normal." I told the other two.

"Well Johnny isn't." Steve snapped.

I nodded and walked slowly over to Johnny, who was still at it. "Johnny… That's enough." I told him.

Johnny sighed and put the weights down beside him. "My arms hurt." He whispered.

I helped him up and took him over to the corner of the room. "I'm sorry." I whispered.

He just nodded and looked at the floor.

"She's acting pretty normal again." I told him.

"I don't care." Johnny said, looking like he was going to cry. "She threatened me." He whispered.

I nodded and pulled his necklace out. "_She_ doesn't matter." I said with a smile.

Johnny smiled a little and leaned back on the wall.

I looked back at everyone and saw they were all talking and not looking at us. I quickly kissed him before making my way back to them.

Two-Bit was talking more to Marcia while Steve talked at Cherry.

Cherry had a big grin on her face and I blushed, hoping she hadn't seen us.

Johnny was beside me while we all talked about nothing really until the bell rang.

AFTER SCHOOL

We all got in Steve's car. He decided to drive us back to my house. First we had to wait for Evie and she was always late.

I was in the back seat with Two-Bit and Johnny so that Evie could sit up front and they could fight.

After ten minutes of waiting Evie got in the car and didn't look at any of us. Evie was pretty, but she wore a lot of make-up. Her hair was curly and blond and her eyes were blue. She was pretty tall and really, really mead to Steve.

"You're late, _again_." Steve hissed as he drove down the road.

"What does it matter?" Evie asked.

"Here we go." Two-Bit whispered.

"It matters cause I'm gonna be late for work!"

"You don't DO anything there!"

"Bull!"

"Hey baby, why don't you get with a real man?" Two-Bit asked, leaning over her seat.

"Shut it!" Steve yelled, pushing him back.

"I was just trying to make the girl happy." Two-Bit said with a grin.

"And it's working." Evie commented.

"Christ!" Steve snapped, pulling into our driveway.

Johnny and I quickly got out and waited for Two-Bit.

Two-Bit went over to Evie's window and knocked on it. Evie rolled it down and smirked at him.

"How about a kiss?" Two-Bit asked.

"All you had to do is ask." Evie answered.

"Touch her and you're dead!" Steve yelled, pushing her back.

Johnny and I decided to go inside so that I could start my homework before the meet.

I sat down in front of the coffee table and put my books on the table.

Two-Bit walked in a few minutes later, holding his cheek.

"What happened?" Johnny asked.

"Steve got me." Two-Bit said with a laugh.

I rolled my eyes and went back to my homework.

AT THE MEET

I was becoming bored with track and I had to face it. I always won and I knew all my opponents by name. The crowd knew who would win when I raced.

The race was over quickly and I got some sort of metal and a cup of water.

I poured the water out cause it had been out there for two hours in the sun and I wasn't drinking it.

"Pony, that was great." Darry said, walking over to me.

"Sure. So exciting." I said, rolling my eyes.

"You're falling out of it." Darry commented, sitting beside me.

"Yeah. There's just no excitement anymore." I explained.

"Why don't you switch sports?" Darry asked, watching the race.

"Like what sport?" I asked.

"Baseball, basketball, soccer, football… Stuff like that." Darry answered.

"_You other brother turned me down too. A shame, we really need another Curtis out there." _

I sighed. "Could we pay for football?"


	8. Chapter 8

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Eight 

Saturday morning Sodapop woke everyone up and we got ready to go to the rodeo. Even Darry was going with us. He gave me a few dollars and told me that's all I get for the day. I was okay with that; all I ever did in those places was watched people.

Everyone got in Darry's truck; three in front, four in back. Darry, Sodapop, and Dally sat up front and the rest of us sat in the back.

Two-Bit was lying down and asleep before Darry even started the truck.

Johnny and Steve were talking about something and I read the book I had stuffed in my back pocket.

The rodeo wasn't far away at all and I was glad for that. When we got there Steve kicked Two-Bit to wake him. Johnny jumped out of the bed and to the dirt. I eased myself to the ground and looked around. They all looked the same to me.

"Meet back here at four." Darry said as we all split up to walk around.

Johnny and I went over to watch some guys ride horses around. We were bored. I didn't really like rodeos and Johnny hated them. He had good reason to. You know those old, drunk men that go to every rodeo? Well that was Johnny's dad. He was loud and when he saw Johnny he gloated. He talked about how great Johnny was. It was weird.

"I hate this." Johnny muttered, sitting on the bench behind us.

"Sorry." I said, following him.

He shook his head and smiled at me. "I'll live."

"Hope so." I said, grinning at him. "I need you around sometimes."

Johnny sat back and closed his eyes.

"Come on. I know where we can go." I said standing up. "But first, I want a Pepsi."

Johnny and I stopped to buy a drink and I headed to the gate behind everything.

"What's back here?" Johnny asked.

"Not here. Back there." I said pointing over at the trees.

I claimed over the fence and waited for Johnny on the other side. He was over quickly and followed me into the woods.

"It's not to far from here." I told him as I grabbed his hand. It was safe out there. "Dad used to take us out here." I explained.

We came to an opening with a tress all around. The ground was covered with leaves and all.

I took Johnny over to one of the trees and sat down.

"This better?" I asked, pulling him closer.

"Yeah." He answered before kissing me again.

FOUR

I got up and quickly pulled my pants on.

"Come on." I said, looking at my watch.

Johnny nodded as he pulled his shirt on.

We ran back to the fence and quickly jumped over.

When we finally got to the truck Darry was staring at us.

"Late." He said, getting in the truck.

"Yeah, yeah." I said, jumping in the back.

On the ride home Steve was staring at us.

"What?" I finally asked.

"I could have sworn you were wearing that shirt and Johnny was wearing the other. And you're shirt is inside-out and backwards." He answered.

I blushed and shook my head. "I guess I was wearing it like this the whole time." I lied.

When we got home I went to my room and took the shirt off and smelled it. It was Johnny's. I cursed myself and got another shirt.

I went out to the living room and saw everyone sitting and watching something on TV. Everyone but Darry.

Darry had a job to be at by five and he was getting ready.

Sodapop was going through the mail and tossed something at me. "It's from the school."

I opened it and read quickly. "Aww…" I groaned.

"What is it?" Two-Bit asked.

"All the athletes have to go to some stupid dance next weekend and we're all paired with a cheerleader." I told them.

"Do they have that many cheerleaders?" Steve asked.

"I'm guessing well be with the flag team and all those other girls." I explained.

"It sounds to me like it's just a lot of Soc girls." Dally said.

"That means Pony's gonna get his ass kicked by some brain dead Soc." Two-Bit said giving me a grin.

"Can you bring friends?" Dally asked.

"Yeah, but you'd have to dress like you got a brain." I answered, sitting in Darry's chair. The man chair.

"Shit!" Sodapop yelled.

Everyone looked at him as he dropped all the mail.

In one hand he had a letter.

"What's wrong?" Two-Bit asked.

"Damn it! Darry!" He yelled, kicking the coffee table.

Darry came out of his room and looked at the letter. "What is it?"

We all watched as Darry opened it and sighed.

"What?" I asked.

"Two-Bit… Go check your mail." He said, sitting down.

"Darry! What are we gonna do?!" Soda yelled.

"Calm down." Dally said, tossing him a cigarette and a box of matches. "Now what's going on?" Dally asked.

"The army's deporting me." Darry told us.

Sodapop grunted and lit the cigarette quickly.

Johnny looked over to me then looked down.

"When do you have to leave?" I asked.

"Next month." He answered.

Two-Bit came back after a while and slammed the door shut.

"You too?" Darry asked.

"Yeah." He answered, lighting a cigarette to calm down.


	9. Chapter 9

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Nine

I went to bed that night by myself. I tossed and turned and waited to fall asleep. But, I could hear Darry calling family members to help us. Family members we never talked to after Mom and Dad.

"Hey Aunt Kel. I need a favor. I know. Yeah. Well I'm being deported next month." He paused. "Please." He begged. "Ya know what! Forget it!"

"Darry, we can take care of things here." Dally said.

"You guy's don't have real jobs!" Darry snapped.

"You all can't live off just Sodapop and Steve's pay." Two-Bit said.

"I could get a job at Bucks." Dally told them.

"I could work fulltime at the DX with Sodapop and Steve." Johnny said.

"Oh come on Johnny. You just got back in school." Darry argued.

"That doesn't matter. Not like I'm going to college or nothing." Johnny said.

"I guess. There's nothing else I can do." Darry said.

THE NEXT MORNING

We all agreed that we didn't feel much like going to the rodeo.

Sodapop, Steve, and Darry went to work and left us all at the house.

When I got up Two-Bit was writing something in one of my note books.

"What ya writing?" I asked, sitting beside him.

"I'm writing a letter to my old man." He answered.

Two-Bit's dad was a big army man and left him and his mom and sister when Mrs. Matthews decided that she didn't want Two-Bit in the army. It was a pretty bad week for him, but Two-Bit got over it after a while.

"Have you seen him?" I asked.

"Yeah. All the time at Bucks. I just can't talk to him." Two-Bit explained.

I nodded and looked around for Johnny and Dally.

"They're at the DX." Two-Bit told me.

"Why?" I asked, turning the TV on.

"Don't know." He answered.

I watched the news for a while and cursed a little. "A storms coming through."

"Should I go get Darry?" Two-Bit asked, putting his note in an envelope.

"I guess it would be a good idea to go tell him." I said, sitting back and rubbing my eyes.

"Well, I'll be back in a few minutes." Two-Bit said, walking out the door after grabbing a jacket.

After a minute it started raining and my TV went out. I decided to go outside and watch the rain.

It felt good outside. I sat down on the step and let the rain fall on me. I liked it, it was like smoking it calmed me down. I closed my eyes and it was like I forgot everything that had happened to me.

After a few minutes I felt a hand on my shoulder.

I looked up and saw Johnny standing over me. He was soaked to the bone, but had a smile on his face. Like he always did.

"I wanna go home." I whispered to him.

He nodded, understanding my meaning.

Everything was crashing down around us and there was nothing we could do.

Johnny sat down beside me and put his arm around me. "It'll turn out fine."

I nodded and leaned on him. "I guess."

"Ponyboy… If I told you… If I told you I love you… How would you feel?" He asked.

I blushed and couldn't talk. The words wouldn't come out.

Johnny had never said he loved me. I really never thought we'd get to that point. I mean it was just a teenage relationship full of secrets and sex. I thought that was all it would be.

"I'd feel… better…" I answered, trying to voice my feelings.

"But do you…" Johnny asked.

"I don't know." I answered. I saw the hurt in his eyes, but he quickly recovered.

"I'm glad it made you feel better." He said, getting up. "I need to get a shower. I'm really cold." He told me, backing over to the door.

I nodded and watched him go in the house.

"Stupid." I told myself. "Why am I so stupid?"

THAT NIGHT

The rain never let up, it just got worse.

Johnny avoided me and I didn't blame him. I just wanted to get him alone and tell him I really did fee; the same. I just couldn't get the words out. They were hard words for me to say.

Darry came home with Two-Bit when the lightning started.

Sodapop and Steve were home for dinner and started a card game.

"I'm going to bed." Darry told us after a while.

"I'm gonna go hit the bar. Anyone wanna come?" He asked, going to the door.

"I'll come. Soda?" Steve asked, going to stand with him.

"I'll come, but only to drive you bums home." Sodapop said.

They left and Johnny and I were alone.

"I think I'll just go to the lot." Johnny said.

"No. Johnny not tonight. It's raining." I said, grabbing his arm. "I need to talk to you."

"Okay." He said, sitting beside me.

"Johnny… I … I love you too. It's just hard." I told him in a whisper.

"Why? How could you even think about…"

"Stop. Johnny, don't talk down about yourself." I told him.

Johnny stared at me for a minute then the power went out.

"Well… I guess that a way of saying go to bed." Johnny said.

"Yeah. Come on. Stay with me tonight?" I asked, standing up and taking his hand.

He shrugged and smiled. "Why not?"


	10. Chapter 10

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Ten 

On Monday everyone went to school with me. Steve and me would be the only ones left at school after that month. Steve was actually being nicer to me. It was weird.

Two-Bit was also acting weird. He wasn't really as funny and we thought about going back to calling him Keith.

In second period Marcia came and sat beside Johnny, me, and Two-Bit.

"Good morning boys." She greeted, looking at the board. Her eyes were red and puffy and she looked like she didn't even try that morning.

"What's wrong?" I asked as the teacher started a lecture.

"Nothing." She answered, not taking her eyes off the teacher.

"That's a lie." Two-Bit pointed out.

"There's nothing wrong." She told him, trying to smile.

"Yes there is. Why are you sitting with us and not Randy's friends?" Two-Bit asked.

"Well… Me and Randy are no longer seeing each other." She answered, wiping away a stray tear.

"Ride home with us." Two-Bit demanded. "I'll take you home."

Marcia stared at him for a minute then nodded.

Johnny and I shared a glance then Marcia tapped on my shoulder.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Uhm… Pony do you have a date to the dance?" She asked.

"No." I answered, knowing where this was going.

"Well could I go with you? I was going to go with Randy, but…"

"Sure." I answered.

Marcia smiled and went back to her work.

P.E

It was a normal day in P.E for all of us, but Cherry and Marcia hung around.

Johnny stayed outside smoking the whole time.

Two-Bit was trying to make himself stronger for war.

"Are you really gonna be deported?" Marcia asked as Two-Bit grabbed a towel.

"Yep." He answered.

"Are you scared?" She asked.

"Naw. I'll have Darry with me." He answered.

"Who's Darry?"

"Ponyboy's oldest brother." Two-Bit answered.

"You might meet him today." I told her.

"That'd be nice."

"Dar-bear's a real joy." Two-Bit commented with a smile.

AFTER SCHOOL

We all walked out in the parking lot and I was met face to face with Curly Shepard.

"You guys here about this drafting?" He asked me.

"Yeah. What about it?" I asked, taking out a pack of cigarette and offered him one.

He took it and lit up. "Well Tim's been deported. He's leaving next month."

"So is Darry and Two-Bit." I told him as we got to Steve's car.

"Who's the girl?" Curly asked, looking at Marcia.

"A friend. She's riding home with us." I answered.

"Tuff enough. Who that guy?" He asked looking passed me.

I turned around and saw Randy walking over to Marcia.

"Randy." I answered.

"Marcia. What are you doing with them?" He asked.

"Leave me alone Randy." Marcia told him.

"Get outa here, Anderson." Steve warned, opening the door for Marcia to claim in the back.

"Randle you'd better watch it." Randy said, grabbing Marcia's arm.

"Ow! Randy stop." Marcia said as he drug her over to him.

"Make another stupid movie and it'll be your last." Two-Bit said, pulling his switchblade out.

"Look this is my girl." Randy said, letting her go.

"She told us you two weren't together anymore. Marcia, get in the car." Two-Bit demanded.

"You can't make her do anything." Randy said.

"You can't either. Ponyboy, come on. You coming with us Curly?" Two-Bit asked.

"Yeah." Curly answered, getting in front with him.

Johnny and I sat in the back with Marcia.

"What's going on with him?" Two-Bit asked.

"I broke up with him and he doesn't think we're over." She explained.

"Man, those Soc guys are messed up." Curly said, sucking on his cigarette.

"You know it." Steve said taking a sip of a beer he got from someone at school.

"So what happened with Evie?" I asked Steve.

"We made up good last night at Bucks." He answered with a grin.

"Are all guys pigs?" Marcia asked.

"Yeah." Two-Bit answered. "All guys. Even Pony here had his imagination."

The other guys in the car laughed at me, but Johnny.

"Who says I haven't done it?" I asked them, earning a terrified look from Johnny.

"With who? Johnny?" Steve asked, getting laughs again.

I though Johnny was gonna die.

"Maybe, maybe not. Why should I tell you?" I said with a grin to make it seem like I was joking.

"Someone hand me a cigarette." Johnny finally said.

Two-Bit passed one back and I handed him my lighter.

"We're just picking at ya." Steve told Johnny.

"It ain't funny." He said, glaring at me.

I bit my lip to keep from laughing at him.

"I got to go pick Evie up from some store she went to instead of school. You guys okay coming?" Steve asked when e got close to the house.

"Sure." I answered for us.

"Marcia?" He asked.

"Yeah." She answered, looking down at her book.

After a minute they were all in conversation, not paying attention to us.

I let my hand travel up Johnny's leg to his hip and pushed down a little.

Johnny gasped and shot me a look.

I knew what he liked and I was gonna use it on him. After a minute of that one I pretended to be whispering something to him, covering his ear with my hand, and bit down on his earlobe.

Johnny shuttered, but didn't even push me away.

"Are you guys havening a whole conversation in whisper back there?" Curly asked after a few minutes of me messing with him.

I pulled back and shook my head. "No." I answered.

Johnny glared at me and he rubbed his ear.

When we got Evie in the car she started in on Marcia.

"Where'd you get here? Off the corner?" She asked.

"Evie, don't start." Steve warned.

I think they only fight so that they could have make-up sex the night after.

"She you're new girl?" Evie asked.

"No." Steve answered.

"I don't believe you!" Evie screamed.

"Why?!"

And that was the pleasant ride home.


	11. Chapter 11

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Eleven 

**Two Weeks later **

Darry and Two-Bit only had a week left with us and everyone was changing.

Dally had gotten a job at Bucks as a bartender. He was there every night and came back to the house to sleep it all off.

Johnny started going to work with Sodapop to get used to it. He was almost never home.

Darry and Two-Bit became to themselves and angry.

I was left alone to do everything myself. I cleaned, cooked, and went to school. That was how it was gonna be for a while.

The night of the dance I was accompanied by Two-Bit, Dally, And Johnny. It was pretty tuff that we'd have one last night to have mindless fun.

Two-Bit took Steve's car so that we could pick Marcia up.

Her house was huge, I though it'd never end.

I got out of the car and went to the door.

Marcia's dad answered the door and frowned at me.

"Who are you?" He asked.

"Ponyboy Curtis." I answered, standing tall.

"Marcia's date?" He asked.

"Yes sir." I told him, looking back at the car.

"Marcia! Ponyboy's here!" He called up the stairs.

Marcia came down the stairs quickly.

She was beautiful. She had on a long faded blue dress that stopped at her knees. The sleeves stopped at her elbows. Her hair was down and she had a diamond necklace on.

"Hey Ponyboy." She greeted.

"You look great." I told her.

Marcia giggled and gave her dad a quick kiss and took my arm.

"Dally, Two-Bit, and Johnny are coming with us." I told her as we walked to the car.

"That's nice." She said.

"You can sit up front with Two-Bit. You might mess your dress up if you get in the back." I told her, opening the door for her. She slipped in and I got in the back with Dally and Johnny. I felt Johnny grab my hand between us as we drove to the school. I glanced at him and saw how envious he was. He was envious of Marcia, who could take my hand in public.

When we got to the school Marcia grabbed my arm again. We all walked in and saw all the kids there, dancing, smoking, talking.

"I wanna dace." Marcia told me.

"You know who likes to dance? Two-Bit. He might dance with you." I told her.

She let go of me and walked over to Two-Bit, who was talking to Dally.

Johnny was sitting down at a table with his head in his hands.

I walked over and put my hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?" I asked, sitting beside him.

"It's not fair." He whispered.

"I know." I whispered to him.

"You aren't gonna dance?" He asked after a minute.

"I hate dancing." I told him, looking out at the floor where Marcia was dancing with Two-Bit. Dally was dancing with some girl, I couldn't really remember her name.

"So what are you gonna do?" Johnny asked.

"Nothing. Sit here." I answered.

Johnny smiled and took my hand under the table. "Maybe later we could beat it outa here."

I grinned at him and nodded.

After a few minutes Two-Bit and Marcia came over to the table and sat down.

"Have fun?" I asked.

"Yeah." Two-Bit answered, putting his arm around Marcia. "Dally's tracking Cherry down right now."

"Why?" Johnny asked.

"Don't know. To dance?" Two-Bit said.

"I'm going to get some punch." Johnny said, going over to the table, letting his hand slip out of mine.

I watched him leave and quickly looked away.

"Have fun?" I asked.

"You already asked that. Are you okay Ponyboy?" Marcia asked.

"Oh, sorry. I just have other thins on my mind." Getting him alone.

I looked out to the floor and saw Dally with Cherry. I tapped on Two-Bit and pointed to them. He grinned.

Johnny came back with our drinks and grabbed my hand again.

After a little while Two-Bit and Marcia got up to dance.

I grabbed Two-Bit's shirt.

"Me and Johnny are gonna beat it for a while." I told him.

"Be back by ten." He told me.

I nodded and got up. Johnny followed me out to the parking lot. We went out to Steve's car and got in the back.

"Better?" I answered, kissing his neck lightly.

"Yeah." He answered, putting his arm around me.

I began to lightly suck on the nip of his neck. He encouraged me by letting his head fall back against the seat. That was the first mark I ever left on him.

"That's gonna be noticeable." He said, looking in the mirror.

"Sorry." I said, blushing.

"It don't matter." He muttered, kissing me hard.

I fell back on the seat and let him on top of me. We both struggled for dominance, but I knew Johnny would win. He had his ways. I bit down on his bottom lip, making him gasp a little. Johnny pulled away and pushed his hands up my dress shirt.

"Johnny, stop." I begged, arching my back.

"Why? I thought you liked it." He said with a smirk as he unbuttoned my shirt.

"I do… Just not here." I pleaded.

Johnny kissed between my pecks and smiled. "We've done it everywhere else."

I really didn't want to stop him and I didn't have to.

The car jolted forward.

"What the…?" Johnny said, looking out the windshield.

Cherry was in some richy car, ramming into ours.

I forgot all bout my shirt and opened the door.

Johnny and I jumped out and saw her do the same.

"Couldn't you just leave us alone?" I asked as she walked over to us.

"I know about you two." She said with a smirk.


	12. Chapter 12

Romeo and Romeo

Romeo and Romeo

Chapter Twelve 

Cherry's grin got wider as she leaned on Steve's car.

"What do you want?" I asked, scared to death.

"I don't know." She said still grinning.

"Are you gonna tell anyone?" I asked, watching her every move.

She shrugged and pulled herself on the hood of Steve's car to sit down.

"This is crazy." Johnny whispered as she let her shirt come up to her hip.

Cherry smiled down at him. "Who cares? Things can always get a little crazy."

I gulped and looked back at the school. No one was outside. We were alone.

"Are you going to tell anyone?" I asked, louder.

"I don't know, Ponyboy. What if I am?" She asked.

I paused for a second. What would happen? Darry and Sodapop love me, they would never judge me. Dally, Steve, and Two-Bit would never hurt Johnny's feelings. No one else mattered.

"I don't know…" I told her.

Johnny glared at her then looked at the ground. "Leave us alone."

"Why?" She asked, flipping her red hair out of her face.

"I'll get Evie." He warned.

Evie was there, I'd seen her. She was with some of her friends around the bathrooms.

"Who's Evie?" Cherry asked, laying down on the hood.

Johnny smiled. "You'll find out." He turned on his heels and walked to the school, leaving me with her.

"No one will believe you." I told her, buttoning my shirt.

She gave me a smirk. "Yeah, Ponyboy."

I grinned at her and looked up at the stars. "Just a matter of time. You're gonna regret this."

"Is this her?!" Evie yelled, walking with Johnny to the car.

"Yeah. I seen her at the DX all the time." Johnny said, stopping beside me.

"Soc-y, it true that you've been checking my guy out?" She asked, with her cigarette in her hand.

"What?" Cherry asked. "No."

"You're on his car! I'm gonna teach you to stick with your own type."

Evie grabbed Cherry by the hair and pulled her off the car.

I looked at Johnny, who just grinned.

Soon there was a crowd that came for nowhere.

I felt myself start to smile as Evie began to beat Cherry.

Johnny stood beside me, laughing a little.

I then felt someone push me out of the way and Two-Bit and Dally grabbed Evie.

"Come on! What're ya doin?" Dally asked as they picked the kicking girl up.

"She's been eyeballin Steve!" Evie screamed.

Two-Bit laughed. "Really?"

"Yeah really! You think Johnny would lie?!" Evie screamed, pulling away from them.

"He is lying! He's queer! They both are!" Cherry screamed, getting up with the help of some guy.

"Johnnycakes lying? Yeah right." Dally said.

"Don't you ever look at Steve again! Guess what, Soc-y! I'm a girl that cares." Evie yelled going over to her.

Me and Two-Bit grabbed her before she could punch her.

She looked pretty upset, more than mad.

"Go on! Get goin! Nothin to see." Two-Bit said, checking out the damage to Steve car. "What happened?" He asked.

"Cherry slammed into it with some other car." I answered.

The front was pretty banged up.

"Gees…" Two-Bit muttered, watching the guy lead Cherry back in the school.

"I think we should get this back to Steve." Dally said, opening the door for Evie.

Johnny sat up front with Two-Bit and Dally. I sat in the back with Evie.

Evie looked really sad. I'd never seen her like that, she was always mad.

"Steve's gonna have a fit about this." Dally said when we got to my house.

We all went in the house and saw Steve sitting with Sodapop on the couch.

"What's up?" Steve asked when he noticed us staring at him.

"It's your car." Dally said.

"What? What did you guy's do?" He asked.

"It wasn't us. It was Cherry." Two-Bit told him as we all went back outside, this time followed by Sodapop and Steve.

He took one look at the car and flipped out.

"That crazy broad! How'd she do this?! I-"

"Steve…" Evie cut him off.

Steve stopped and looked at Evie. "When did you get here?"

Evie hugged Steve tight and I think she was crying.

"What's wrong?" Steve asked, holding her.

"Come on." Two-Bit said, putting his hand on our shoulders.

We went inside and left the two alone.

I glanced at Johnny.

He still looked happy about what happened. No one had believed her.

"How was the dance?" Darry asked when everyone got settled.

Steve drove Evie home and came back after a while.

"Not good." I answered.

"We left Marcia." Dally said, with a forced frown. We knew he wanted to laugh so badly.

"And get this, Dar. Cherry swore up and down that Johnny and Ponyboy were queer." Two-Bit said with an amused grin.

Everyone in the room laughed.

Johnny and I exchanged quick looks. We both laughed with them.

"Man, I'm sleepy." I said after a while.

"I think it's time for all of us to get to bed." Darry said, getting up and going to the bathroom.

I got up with Sodapop and started waking to our room.

"What's that on your neck, Johnny?" Steve asked.

I turned around and saw Johnny just smirk at him.

Steve turned and looked at me.

I grinned and turned around, shutting the door behind me.

The End 


End file.
